I voted yes - but I did hesitate as the ethnic/minority discriminator went off in my head. The reason I still voted 'yes' is the total conviction that I don't know of anyone who actually believes that the viola is somehow inferior and the jokes are actually justified. I think if I knew one such I would no longer find any of them funny.

What they are is basically a tool to permit the expressin of a certain kind of humour - often that could be applied to any minority but here it is done with the express understanding that it is a joke.

I'm a life-long violist, and find some viola jokes hilarious; others, just mean. More often, though, it's who tells the joke that creates the problem (an arrogant person whose own technique is markedly deficient, for instance, telling one of the 'how to make a violist vibrate' jokes, is not funny).

All joking aside (the side I'm standing on, of course!), but I voted "No", because viola jokes (to me, as a psychologist) only show how jealous & insecure violinists are ~ they "w-i-s-h" they could make that awesome treble, soul-shaking, sound ...but they can't, period! {:~)) [I play both; checkmate!]

Viola jokes are actually more funny one realizes that the object of the joke could be anyone who chooses a less popular instrument, say oboe or harp. Non-musicians probably make musician jokes, it's all the same.

There are two main reasons I really never seriously considered switching to the viola. First, I just happen to really like the huge violin repertoire. (Also a reason I like the piano.) But the second reason is because I already have issues with left hand and shoulder stiffness and it's hard enough to be comfortable on the violin, reaching all the notes on the fingerboard, and my guess is that playing the viola would just be that much harder. I actually do think that for the purely physical reasons playing the viola is probably harder than playing the violin. And I suppose there is the financial constraint of having to buy a viola and a case and a bow and strings and music and ...